Aged Pu Erh taste difference?

How much of a taste difference should one notice with “new” cooked Pu Erh (such as Adagio sells) and 6 year old Pu Erh blocks? I picked up a 125 gram box of Pu Erh blocks for $4(I have no idea what the brand is as I can not read Chinese) and only later realized that they are probably aged as in the midsts of the Chinese writing on box there is a Roman '99 which I'm guessing means that it was produced in 1999. At first I though I noticed a slight taste difference between the Adagio Pu Erh but I later realized that it was only a matter of strength as the mini blocks contain more than a teaspoon worth of Pu Erh as the Adagio Pu Erh tastes the same when increase the amount. Anyway, am I missing something or does one have to be more familiar with Pu Erh (I've only been drinking it for a few months now and can not taste any difference between Adagio and Stash Pu Erh) in order to recognize and appreciate the improvement of Pu Erh with age, or is simply 6 years not long enough to notice a difference?

The mini tu chas or mini bricks are often consdered the 'lipton' of puerh. They are also often 'black' or 'cooked' pu. Cooked puerh doesn't change as drastically in flavor as raw puerh as it ages. So the mini bricks probobly don't taste too dramatically different now than they did when they were first made. Smoother, but little change in flavor.
Any additions or corrections sEB? Hope this helps!
Marlene

Ok thats good to know so I don't make the mistake of spending the extra money on aged cooked puerh, should I ever change my mind about wanting to avoid aged puerh out of fear of getting hooked on them.

jogrebe wrote:Ok thats good to know so I don't make the mistake of spending the extra money on aged cooked puerh, should I ever change my mind about wanting to avoid aged puerh out of fear of getting hooked on them.

I'm sending you some aged cooked pu'er in your pu-pu-package. 6 years can make a difference in getting rid of some of the mustiness ("pond" flavors) of cooked pu and letting it mellow.

Others, like Guang of Hou De Asian Art, say that age can make a difference in cooked tea. Guang sells 1980s loose cooked tea that you can sample for $5.50 w/free priority mail shipping with the tag line:

Some people have the theory that cooked pu-erhs will not improve its aroma over time. Try this aged loose pu-erh and Think again!

I have a small sample of this but haven't tried it yet, so I can't tell you that I agree with that assessment. But I do think that the older cooked tea I'm sending you will at least illustrate how mustiness can fade...

bearsbearsbears wrote: 6 years can make a difference in getting rid of some of the mustiness ("pond" flavors) of cooked pu and letting it mellow.

Interesting, I previously thought that the mustiness or pond flavor as you call it in cooked puerh was simply a sign that it was wet storage, as the cooked Xiaguan tuo cha that I've been drinking has what I'd consider a mellow taste. Although I know what you mean about being able to "air out" musty puerh to make it lest musty which I managed to do in the course of a week or so with a batch of loose puerh.

PS I also know better now when I posted the original question a around half a year ago as the puerh blocks in question were individually vacuum sealed in foil which would have made it impossible for them to have aged.